A walk through the Shoenberg Temperate House is a lovely respite from the blustery St. Louis weather.  Dedicated in March 1990, the building replaced the 1913 Mediterranean House on a site just north of the Climatron® geodesic dome conservatory.  Boasting 8,900 square feet of space, it displays warm temperate-zone species requiring special protection from our St. Louis winters. The largest portion of the house features species from five widely separated regions of the world known for their “Mediterranean” climate, chiefly characterized by warm, dry summers and cool, moist winters.

My mother always announced the official start of the Christmas season while watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV. “Look,” she would shout with childlike glee, “there’s Santa...it’s officially Christmas-time!”

Mom would have been right at home in Mexico, where the largely Catholic country starts celebrating the holidays in earnest with the Feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe (the Virgin Mary) on December 12 – and doesn’t stop until January 6, or the Feast of the Three Kings.

Englishman Henry Shaw came to St. Louis in 1819 when he was 19 years old and sold hardware along the riverfront before moving into property management and lending, too. “He made a massive amount of money,” says Missouri Botanical Garden Historical Interpretation Specialist Tyler Nowell. Shaw used some of it to travel — mostly through Europe, where the Kew gardens in London inspired him to grow something similarly striking back home.

Sliding open the original pocket doors leading into the parlor of his 1894 Central West End home, Jim Heeter, owner of the Gifted Gardener, unveils his spectacular homage to the man in the red suit, Santa Claus. Heeter’s love affair with St. Nick goes all the way back to his college days in Springfield, MO, when he was called to fill in for Santa at Sears. What was supposed to be a one-night thing turned into a two-year gig, but it taught Heeter so much about the spirit of the holiday season, which he incorporates into his decorating.

When bringing out the boxes of decorations and working like an elf to deck your halls for the holidays, don't forget to bring a touch of the season to your kitchen. Setting up a display on the kitchen island is an easy way to continue the holiday cheer in a simple, subtle way. Add florals, ribbons, ornaments and more, but don't forget to leave room for holiday food prep or serving. Three local design shops show off their take on a working kitchen-island display in a beautiful kitchen located in the Fischer & Frichtel display home in Enclave Bellerive.

Short on functionality and lacking warmth, Susie Knopf’s Clayton high-rise was overdue for a reboot in late 2014. The 2,500-square-foot space now pops with charm from a rustic floor-to-ceiling renovation that includes two fireplaces.

“The unit was very dated,” says Susie, “and, being an interior designer, I wanted a different style and needed to have more storage and open up the space.”